2007 Budweiser Shootout
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| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 2 non-championship races in the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series | |||
 Layout of Daytona International Speedway | |||
| Date | February 10, 2007 | ||
| Location | Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.500 miles (4.023 km) | ||
| Distance | 70 laps, 175.000 mi (281.635 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures up to 69.1 °F (20.6 °C); wind speeds at around 4.83 mph (7.77 km/h)[3] | ||
| Average speed | 166.195 mph (267.465 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Michael Waltrip Racing | ||
| Time | N/A | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kyle Busch | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 39 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds | ||
| Nielsen ratings | 4.2/7 (Overnight)[4] | ||
The 2007 Budweiser Shootout was a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series stock car race that was held on February 10, 2007 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It was the first non-championship race of the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season and the 29th running of the event. Tony Stewart of Joe Gibbs Racing won the 70-lap race; Robert Yates Racing driver David Gilliland finished second and Kurt Busch came in third for Penske Racing.
The 2007 Budweiser Shootout was the first of two non-championship events for the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season and the 29th annual edition of the event. It was held on February 10, 2007 at the 2.5 mi (4.0 km) superspeedway, Daytona International Speedway, in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States.[1][2] The track features four corners which are banked as high as 31 degrees, while the front stretch has 18-degree banking.[5]
The Budweiser Shootout was conceived by Busch Beer brand manager Monty Roberts, who wanted to promote the beer brand with a race between the fastest Cup Series drivers of the previous season. It was first held in 1979 as the Busch Clash.[6] Budweiser became the title sponsor of the event in 1998; it was resultantly named the Bud Shootout before being retitled to the Budweiser Shootout in 2001.[7] The race is considered a warm-up for the season-opening Daytona 500.[8]
A total of 21 drivers were eligible to compete in the race, including the pole sitters of the 2006 season and past winners of the race who finished within the top 50 positions of the Drivers' Championship standings in 2006.[2][n 1] Two of the participants, Dale Jarrett and Brian Vickers, drove for Toyota, marking the manufacturer's debut in the Cup Series.[9] Denny Hamlin was the defending winner.[10] The race had a scheduled distance of 70 laps, which were split into two segments of 20 and 50 laps with a ten-minute pit stop in between. Each driver was required to make at least one pit stop and change at least two tires during green-flag conditions. The race was also guaranteed to end under the green flag, and caution flag laps were counted.[2]